"Please Mr. Please" is a song written by Bruce Welch and John Rostill, both members of British pop singer Cliff Richard's backing band, The Shadows.[1] Welch had originally recorded the song himself in 1974[2] with no commercial success.
In 1975, British-Australian singer Olivia Newton-John recorded and released a version the song as the second and final single from her fifth studio album, Have You Never Been Mellow.
The song begins as an apparent tribute to the jukebox and how one can listen to a lot of great music for a small price. But instead of continuing along those lines, the song picks up on how some songs on the jukebox can trigger bad memories. This happens when the protagonist—at a tavern with friends, trying to get over a just-broken relationship—sees another customer at the jukebox, trying to play "B-17", which is coded to a song the woman does not want to hear.
The song, she cries, was special to the now-broken relationship. It now triggers sorrowful memories to the point that she never wants to hear the song again. The refrain sees the woman begging the "button-pushin' cowboy" (the ‘Mister’ of the song’s title) not to play the evocative song.
Chart performance
Released as a single in 1975, "Please Mr. Please" reached the Top 10 on three major Billboard charts in the US that year. On the pop chart, the song peaked at number three in August 1975, remaining in the Top 40 for 12 weeks: Newton-John's fifth consecutive Top Ten hit, "Please Mr. Please" would also mark Newton-John's last appearance in the top ten for a three-year period.[3] On the country chart, the song reached #5, while on the adult contemporary chart, the song spent three weeks at number one.[1] The single was a certified Gold record by the RIAA.[4]
Claude François covered the song in a French language version entitled "Pourquoi Pleurer (Sur Un Succès D'Été)" which was released as a single in France in 1975, and became the opener and title track of that year's album release by the singer.
Salvadoran singer Evangelina Sol covered the song in a Spanish language version entitled "Por favor Señor, por favor" on her 1975 album "Evangelina".
References
^ abcHyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of #1 Adult Contemporary Hits (Billboard Publications)
^"Bruce Welch Discography - UK". 45cat.com. Retrieved 10 October 2016.
^ abWhitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications)
^"Top 100 Hits of 1975/Top 100 Songs of 1975". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 10 October 2016.
^Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Juliana Hatfield Sings Olivia Newton-John". AllMusic. Retrieved 23 April 2018.
January 28, 2023
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This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources Please Mr Please news newspapers books scholar JSTOR June 2011 Learn how and when to remove this template message Please Mr Please is a song written by Bruce Welch and John Rostill both members of British pop singer Cliff Richard s backing band The Shadows 1 Welch had originally recorded the song himself in 1974 2 with no commercial success Please Mr Please Single by Olivia Newton Johnfrom the album Have You Never Been MellowB side Don t Cry for Me Argentina UK And in the Morning US and rest of world ReleasedJune 1975GenreCountry popLength3 31LabelEMISongwriter s Bruce Welch John RostillProducer s John FarrarOlivia Newton John singles chronology Have You Never Been Mellow 1975 Please Mr Please 1975 Something Better to Do 1975 In 1975 British Australian singer Olivia Newton John recorded and released a version the song as the second and final single from her fifth studio album Have You Never Been Mellow Contents 1 Song story 2 Chart performance 2 1 Weekly charts 2 2 Year end charts 3 Cover versions 4 ReferencesSong story EditThe song begins as an apparent tribute to the jukebox and how one can listen to a lot of great music for a small price But instead of continuing along those lines the song picks up on how some songs on the jukebox can trigger bad memories This happens when the protagonist at a tavern with friends trying to get over a just broken relationship sees another customer at the jukebox trying to play B 17 which is coded to a song the woman does not want to hear The song she cries was special to the now broken relationship It now triggers sorrowful memories to the point that she never wants to hear the song again The refrain sees the woman begging the button pushin cowboy the Mister of the song s title not to play the evocative song Chart performance EditReleased as a single in 1975 Please Mr Please reached the Top 10 on three major Billboard charts in the US that year On the pop chart the song peaked at number three in August 1975 remaining in the Top 40 for 12 weeks Newton John s fifth consecutive Top Ten hit Please Mr Please would also mark Newton John s last appearance in the top ten for a three year period 3 On the country chart the song reached 5 while on the adult contemporary chart the song spent three weeks at number one 1 The single was a certified Gold record by the RIAA 4 Weekly charts Edit Chart 1975 PeakpositionAustralian Kent Music Report 5 35Canadian RPM Top Singles 6 1Canadian RPM Country Tracks 7 1Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary Tracks 8 1New Zealand RIANZ 9 7US Billboard Hot 100 10 3US Billboard Hot Country Singles 3 5US Billboard Easy Listening 1 1US Cash Box Top 100 11 1Chart 2022 PeakpositionU S Digital Song Sales Billboard 12 48Year end charts Edit Chart 1975 RankCanada RPM Top Singles 13 24US Billboard Hot 100 14 49US Cash Box Top 100 13 26Cover versions EditJuliana Hatfield covered the song on her album Juliana Hatfield Sings Olivia Newton John 15 Claude Francois covered the song in a French language version entitled Pourquoi Pleurer Sur Un Succes D Ete which was released as a single in France in 1975 and became the opener and title track of that year s album release by the singer Salvadoran singer Evangelina Sol covered the song in a Spanish language version entitled Por favor Senor por favor on her 1975 album Evangelina References Edit a b c Hyatt Wesley 1999 The Billboard Book of 1 Adult Contemporary Hits Billboard Publications Bruce Welch Discography UK 45cat com Retrieved 10 October 2016 a b Whitburn Joel 2004 The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits 8th Edition Billboard Publications American single certifications Olivia Newton John Please Mister Please Recording Industry Association of America Kent David 1993 Australian Chart Book 1970 1992 St Ives N S W Australian Chart Book p 217 ISBN 0 646 11917 6 RPM Top Singles for August 9 1975 RPM Retrieved 29 July 2011 RPM Country Tracks for September 6 1975 RPM Retrieved 29 July 2011 RPM Adult Contemporary for August 9 1975 RPM Retrieved 29 July 2011 Charts nz Olivia Newton John Billboard Chart History Billboard Retrieved 11 July 2017 Cash Box Top 100 8 02 75 CU S Digital Song Sales Week of August 20 2022 Billboard Retrieved 16 August 2022 a b Cash Box YE Pop Singles 1975 Top 100 Hits of 1975 Top 100 Songs of 1975 Musicoutfitters com Retrieved 10 October 2016 Erlewine Stephen Thomas Juliana Hatfield Sings Olivia Newton John AllMusic Retrieved 23 April 2018 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Please Mr Please amp oldid 1106790607, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
